Eien Maboroshi
Eien Maboroshi (幻永遠, Maboroshi Eien) was a Genin level shinobi from Hikagakure and a member of Team 1, prior to his death in year 94. Background Eien was child of a blacksmithing family residing on the outskirts of Kirigakure. The art of molding lumps of iron and steel into objects of beauty and purpose runs deep in their blood. His father was known for his quality weapons, and neutrality when it came to his clients. He was a greedy man, obsessed with making profit at any cost, to the point of selling weapons to known murderers and rapists. He even preferred the aforementioned clientele saying that they paid more .His mother on the other hand was kind but weak, often submitting to the wishes of her husband even if they were twisted or dangerous. Being the first and only child, his father forced him to follow in his path and become a blacksmith. Influenced by his mother Eien also followed his father’s orders, even though he had dreams of becoming a shinobi. Having no interest or talent for blacksmithing, Eien was often subject to physical and mental abuse in the form of hard physical training. When he was 9 he was sent to the village to buy food, as his father was busy working on an sword. He was given an exact amount of money and specific vendors from which to buy each item. He had already bought rice, fruit and vegetables. “Only fish remaining” he thought to himself as he walked down the street. Walking down the street he noticed that people were staring at him, they would look at him with cold eyes filled with disgust. Soon they started snickering between themselves, while the more aggressive bunch started calling him names, spitting in front of him and such. When he finally couldn't take it anymore, he ran off and took shelter in a nearby bookstore. He went into the back of the bookstore and leaned on one of the shelves in order to rest from the running. Having caught his breath he looked up and glanced over the books there, one titled “The art of being a Shinobi” caught his eye. The shinobi had always fascinated him, and he couldn't resist looking at it. In the end he had spent an hour reading the book and decided to buy it, knowing what would happen to him when he returned home. He carefully wrapped to book into some paper he found in the bookstore and put it in his backpack. When he was nearing the home he quietly climbed up his house, using all the trash in front of it. He grabbed a ledge in front of a small window, and pulled himself up, then he opened the window and went through it. He had used this attic for a long time, it was his safe-haven, the place where he went to escape the grasp of his father, even for a little bit. The attic was dusty, filled with cobweb, there were miscellaneous items around, along with a couple of blacksmithing tools. He had cleaned a small part of it, and kept a few things like a blanket, a small candle and a tiny table made out of two bricks and a broken board. He put the book still wrapped in paper on the table and scurried back down again. He then pretended he just came back from the village and told his father that he lost some of the money. His father was furious “ You little shit, do you think that money grows on trees. Am i supposed to let a moron like you succeed the family business” he said as he started punching him. He kept cursing him and hitting him, eventually Eien fell on the floor but his father didn't stop .When he finally stopped Eien was curled up on the ground with blood flowing, out of his mouth, but he didn't let out a sound the whole time. He grabbed Eien’s hand and dragged him to the workshop, when he was there he took the still unfinished weapon he was working on, a sword with an inscription on it “ To kill is to learn” , one of the wisdom's his father’s clients followed, Eien thought. His father put the sword into the blindingly hot fire of the forge until it was searing hot, he then twisted Eien’s hand and pressed the top of the sword onto it. Eien wanted to scream, he wanted to yell, but he realized it would only fuel his father further. He started crying , but still kept his mouth firmly closed. His father finally removed the sword, and cooled it off in the cauldron of water nearby, he let go of Eien’s wrist and left the workshop. Eien’s eyes filled with tears, and he started crying, he looked at his hand and saw that the kanji for “learn” was burned into his flesh. He took it as a sign, he would do whatever he could to get out of this place, no matter how long it took. The following year he continually went up to his roof and read the book he bought, he kept rereading it and practicing the techniques described. The book was visibly used, but he took good care of it so it wasn’t as torn as it should be. Looking around the attic he noticed a piece of paper sticking out below one of the piles of tools, he tried to pull it out, when he failed to succeed, he pulled harder and the pile started falling onto him. He managed to move away, but the pile of fell on the floor , making a horrible noise. Usually he would be worried about his father beating him when he found out, but something caught his attention, a katana was on the top of the pile, the paper was attached to it. He took it in his hands and read the what was written:” I am blank, for the only inscription I need is the soul of my wielder.” . Having read that, he looked at the katana once more, it was lacking in any kind of decoration, the sheet was made out of reinforced black wood and black. The handle was completely black as well, it was made out of wood as well, except the wood was wrapped in some sort of thread. Just as he reached to unsheath it, his father climbed up to the attic, he saw Eien’s book and said “ A book about Shinobi, after all the time I spent teaching you, you ungrateful bastard”. He grabbed Eien and dragged him out into the field along with all the things he had brought to the attic, including the katana and the book. His mother stood there and looked as his father started a fire and started burning parts of Eien’s haven. “What is this ugly sword, its plain as shit, nobody would buy it. I will burn it after I burn this filthy book” his father said, as he picked up the book and started bringing it closer to the fire. As he saw the book that saved him the last year, the book that gave him give purpose about to be burned, Eien snapped. He only thought about protecting the book that was the closest thing he had to a friend, he closed his eyes for a second, and when he opened them he saw the scabbard of the katana lying on the ground and his hands resting on the handle of the sword, he looked to the blade and was mesmerised by its beauty, but snapped out of it when he saw a drop of blood sliding down it. He looked up and saw his father impaled upon his sword, the sword had passed clean through his guts, it reminded him of the techniques he read of in the book. He thought he would be sorry, or even scared, but instead as he saw his father draw his last breath, he was relieved, he didn’t think about stabbing his father, his sword carried no thought only instinct to punish the one who wronged him. As his father's corpse fell on the ground, he pulled the sword out, wiped the blood away and sheathed it, then he kneeled down and ripped the book out of his father’s dead hands. He looked over to see his mother frozen and pale as a ghost, she would never speak another word after that incident. Nobody asked questions about his death and nobody attended the funeral except Eien and his mother. Soon after his mother hanged herself, apparently she couldn't stand living without the man who tortured her. Since the people of their small village hated his family, and all the crooks they brought to their village, he could not find any work, therefore he was forced to spend the following year working menial jobs in the Kirigakure village. Then at the age of 11, when he made enough money, he enrolled at Kirigakure academy. He held no particular loyalty, it was just means of getting stronger for him. He quickly caught up thanks to his previous studies, and showed particular promise with blades. At the age of 12 he became a genin, that's when he heard of a new village forming called Hikagakure, he figured a lot of interesting people would be there allowing him to further his sword mastery. He set out on a pilgrimage of sorts, bringing only his sword and equipment with him, he lived on what he could find on the way, including two unfortunate squirrels. He finally arrived at the gates, and walked through it not aware of what would follow..... Personality Eien often seems distant, or aloof. What he did in the past seems of little concern for him, as he holds no grudges or regrets. He is capable of planning but often leaves things to instinct. He doesn't take things at face value and often searches for a deeper meaning. He is capable of killing, but only if it goes along with his own convictions of punishing those who deserve it. He values punishing the offender above saving the victim, something he knows is wrong but cannot change. He disliked sparring with other students since he had to hold back his normal fighting style, but after awhile he got used to it and realized it was valuable training, since then it has become his favorite past-time. When fighting seriously he often lets his sword guide him instead of planning out the attack. Appearance A lean and tough body that has more muscle than an average kid his age. He has long black hair, that sometimes covers a part his face. His brown eyes are small and piercing. His face is bony and strong, and his skin rough. He has a kanji meaning "Learn" burned into the flesh of his right arm, specifically the wrist. He recently aquired a scar on his face: '-------------------------------------' The wound wasn’t a small one, it was under his right eye, and spread from his nose towards the right, almost touching the ear. It was wide as if open, with strings that held it together making multiple X symbols across it. With what looked like tiny burn marks surrounding the wound, It looked like a experiment gone horribly wrong. '-------------------------------------' Clothes: After returning from his voyage he wears different clothes, as to provide more protection from the incoming cold, and allow easier movement. He wears a black Hakama, the sash going across his waist is black aswell. His sword is held firmly by the aformentioned sash. His chest is covered with a grey sleevless shirt. Over the shirt there's a black jacket, going slightly past his waist. The jacket is covering only the sides of his body leaving the middle uncovered. The sleeves are long, covering his hands if he lets them. The inside of the jacket is filled with pockets and straps, used for carrying equipment. The Sword: On the first glance it looks like a plane katana, the hilt and the scabbard both black. The first oddity in this sword is its lack of tsuba, the blade and the hilt connect directly. The hilt is slightly shorter than one of a normal katana, and is made of black wood much like the scabbard. The wood is sometimes wrapped with threads, but is mostly left bare. The blade itself has a slight curve, making it straighter than most katana. It is a visibly old sword, yet the quality of it is such that even with age it has not lost its ability. No part of the sword contains any kind of decoration. Abilities The Sword: The sword is incredibly durable, being able to take astounding amounts of punishment before blunting even slightly. This unfortunately makes the maintenance extremely hard to do, thankfully it is not often that it needs to be done. The sharpness of the sword is usually superb, being able to significantly damage a normal blade when clashing. Ofcourse this does not account for the skill of either wielders. Accolades Quotes "I do not think of my problems, I solve them." "I seek wisdom and knowledge, hopefully not one without the other."